Eat’s A Date at Café 1771

This Eat’s a Date from OpenRice Philippines was actually my second time to visit Café 1771 – the first was then my hubby Tim took me there on our anniversary. Of course, the food was great, and I enjoyed myself thoroughly. This second time was no different, as we were treated to good food (especially the desserts!) that I enjoyed as whole.

To begin with, we were seated upstairs in the Wine Bar 1771 area (see hubby’s post about it here), because the Café 1771’s spaces aren’t really for big groups – which is why it’s more suited for dates and the like. The interiors are also lighter and carry a more casual feel as compared to the more serious tone of the design upstairs. I liked the seeming ‘touch of home’ feel to the space, which really makes it much more comfortable to be in.

Look at those interiors. I love the ambiance and the feel of the place, it's cute, cozy and 'cool' - for lack of a better term. It's what a cafe's supposed to be - a place to relax and rest and enjoy the company of people close to you.

We began with some light dishes, which included the Fried Squash Flowers (Php280), Spaghetti with Sardines and Fried Capers (Php290), and the Salbacho Pizza. The mains were the Organic Chicken in Potato Crust (Php550), Orange Pork Spareribs (Php450), and the Wine Bar Burger (Php410).

Where the mains are concerned, I’m not a big burger fan, but I do understand why the Wine Bar Burger was such a big hit, especially with the guys, my husband included. He absolutely loves bulalo (beef bone marrow), which you spread on the burger before you eat it. It’s guy food and a heart attack waiting to happen (LOL). The Orange Pork Spareribs and Organic Chicken in Potato Crust I enjoyed much, much more, and were among my faves of the night.

Dessert time was naturally the highlight of the night for me, with the Amandelle (Php300) and the Gianduja Truffle Mousse Cake (Php250). The Amandelle I particularly enjoyed the most, because of the fudgy texture, plus the nuts and the bit of citrusy twang you get from time to time. It was a great way to end a very wonderful dining experience.

Café 1771 is definitely one of my fave restaurants – although the price range relegates it to ‘special occasions’ – and I’d like to thank OpenRice and Café 1771 for a great night filled with great food.

Cooking Projects: Angelhair Pesto with Pan-fried Chicken

I have to address first my lack of posts of late, as I’ve started working again (thank God for that) and I usually get home very tired and sleepy (since I work at night), so well, that kind of makes blogging something I relegate to the back burner.

Anyway, I just wanted to share one of my cooking projects again. This time around it's my Angelhair Pesto with Pan-Fried Chicken. Photos are again from my hubby, Tim. Hopefully I can cook more as I've lacked the time recently to try new things in the kitchen, due to my work schedule. 

Cooking Projects: Herb Crusted Cream Dory with Lemon Butter Sauce

yummy.

Corregidor

Dahil bored ako, I'll be posting some pictures from our Corregidor day tour last December 18, 2010.  It was Tim's birthday gift to me, sweetness. :)  He found and booked the trip on this site.

Welcome to Corregidor! 

The tranvia is used to transport tourists from one  place to another.

one of our "prenup" pichurs. good thing he brought his tripod. 

Eat's A Date at The Chocolate Kiss Café (Bahay ng Alumni , UP Diliman)

Again sorry for the lack of posts, been busy with my MA and other stuff. 

Anyway, for my 3rd (and husband's 4th) Eat's A Date event, Openrice invited us to The Chocolate Kiss Café at the Bahay ng Alumni in UP Diliman last January 24. (super late post, sorry!)  How can we resist? It is one of our favorite restaurants, hehehe.  We celebrated a lot of memorable events here, sarap mag-reminisce. :)      

Anyway, a brief history of The Chocolate Kiss Cafe can be found here. 

Cho-kiss (that's what Tim and I call it) is one of our faves since it offers good food at a very reasonable price.  Its menu consists of soups, salads & sides, sandwiches, pasta, and their house specialties.  Chocolate Kiss Café has a laid back and relaxed interiors.  During our college days sa UP, we don't eat here because we can't afford it yet back then. hehehe. Fast forward to present time, whenever we go to UP now, one of our choice restaurants is Cho-kiss, may budget na kahit paano for it. :)

During our Eat's A Date visit, a guitarist and a flutist played beautiful music that added coziness to the place.  A live band/musician plays regularly on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays from 6pm to 9pm.  

First up, the servers gave us a glass their bottomless iced tea (Php70) served with honey/syrup.  This beverage is one of my favorites, since it freshly brewed and not that acidic.  

APPETIZERS:

An assortment of appetizers were served to us. I was able to try some of them, and i can say that they all taste good. 

Chicken Quesadilla (Php225)
Chicken, cheese, bell peppers and onions, sandwiched in between two flour tortillas, and pan-fried to a crisp. Served with sour cream and salsa.  

The Chicken Quesadilla (Php225) is a winner.  I love that the flour tortilla is soft, and it is served with sour cream and salsa.  

Rumaki (Php162)

Other starters that were served to us:

Piglets (Php155) - what a catchy name!!! I rarely eat pork (except for bacon, I LOVE bacon!), but I have to say I enjoyed eating this one.  It's basically chorizo bites wrapped in bacon. :) and it comes with a dip too, kaya panalo! 

Fish Croquettes (Php185 - Flaked fish and mashed potatoes, rolled in bread crumbs, then deep fried until golden brown. Served with horseradish dip.)

Spinach Cream Dip (Php180 - Spinach, mushrooms, and roasted peppers in warm cream cheese dip. Served with butter-toasted French bread. P180) 

MAIN DISHES:

Again, we were served with A LOT of dishes, sobrang dami, hindi namin alam ano uunahin. Thank you Cho-kiss!!! Anyway, I think I was able to taste everything.  There were a lot of stand out dishes for me like the fish fillet with pesto salsa (fish is cooked just right, love the combination of flavors), kalbi chim, and linguine margarita with shrimp (i love pasta, and shrimp, so this combi is a winner for me)

Fish Fillet with Pesto Salsa (Php235)

Grilled fillet of fish served with corn-pesto salsa on paprika rice. P235

Kalbi Chim (Php 240)

Linguine Margarita with Shrimp (Php235)

Other mains:

Chicken Kiev (Roulade of tender chicken breast filled with cream cheese, butter, and herbs. Served with mixed vegetables and rice. Php215

Or served with garlic mashed potatoes. Php240)

Fish Kiev (The fish version of our Chicken Kiev, with the same load of creamy goodness. Served with white wine scallion sauce, steamed vegetables and rice. P250

Or served with garlic mashed potatoes. P275)

Hungarian Sausage & Penne (Php 210).

Beef Caldereta (Php 230)

Callos (Php 255)

Sate Ayam & Nasi Goreng (Php 245)

Cheeseburger (Php 215)

Pulled-Pork Sandwich (Php 205)

CAKES:

I am not really a cake lover, pero I can say na the cakes in Cho-Kiss are delicious. proof: my mother-in-law (who is very pihikan sa food) loves them. hehehe.  Our faves: Sansrival (my ultimate fave, crunchy and creamy, and yummy!!! hahaha!), Kahlua Butter Cake, and Carrot Cake. :)  

Date Walnut Cake (Php Php 80)

Kahlua Butter Cake (Php 105)

Blueberry Cheesecake (Php115/slice)

Other cakes served:

Devil’s Food Cake (Php80/slice) 

Quezo Chiffon Cake (Php85/slice)

Carrot Cake (Php80/slice) 

Sour Cream Cheesecake (Php115/slice)

Chocolate Chip Cheesecake (Php120/slice)

Texas Square Sundae (Php115/slice)

Sans Rival (Php80/slice)

Classic Chocolate Cake (Php103/slice)




Verdict?!
Price : Thumbs up! 
Taste: Thumbs up!
Service: Thumbs up!
Clean: Thumbs up!
Environment: Thumbs up!  

Dinagyang Festival 2012

I'm back! Sorry for the lack of posts during the past weeks.  I just got back from the States, I was able to spend the Holidays with my family.  Sad though 'coz Tim wasn't able to come with me.  

Anyway, two days after I got back from the States, husband and I flew to Iloilo City to cover our first festival -- Dinagyang.  (jetlag + pagod, whew)

The Dinagyang in Iloilo City is an annual religious and cultural festivity celebrated on the fourth Sunday of January in honor of Senor Sto. Nino celebrate the arrival on Panay Island of Malay settlers and the sale of the island to them by the Ati tribesmen.  The word Dinagyang is an Iloilo term which means merry making.  

The festival consists of different events: fluvial procession aling the Iloilo River, Kasadyahan, and the Ati-atihan contest.  For this year, 13 tribes from different high schools in Iloilo competed for the Ati-atihan contest, where Tribu Pan-ay emerged as the  champion.  

Tim and I were fortunate enough to have Media/Photographer passes from his friends, thank you, thank you!!! :)  and also, I wouldn't be able to take pictures if not for Tim who lent his camera lenses to me, salamat! :)   

Here are a few pics:

The trip to Iloilo was worth it. as early as nnow, we're already planning to go back again next year to shoot the Dinagyang Festival again.  Sama kayo?! Tara! :)  

Eat's A Date at (with) Mr. Jones (Greenbelt5)

First, I would like to thank OpenRice for my (and Tim's) second Eat's a Date! Thank you, thank you! :) Secondly, I apologize for posting this a bit late - holidays are hectic and a lot of things needed to be done first, especially since I'm leaving on a trip in a few days. Will be missing my hubby, but I'm sure he'll  live. LOL.

Anyway, balik sa usapan. The event took place at Mr. Jones at Greenbelt 5. Mr. Jones is under the Raintree Restaurants groups - others restos under Raintree are M (Museum) Cafe, MoMo, and Chelsea. 

Mr. Jones
G/F Greenbelt 5,
Makati City, Metro Manila

The restaurant (diner) has the 1980's feel and offers a wide array of authentic American diner cuisine. Even the menus look similar to American diners'. The music was also vintage, but only my husband really likes those types of songs. Hehehe. I had high hopes for this Eat's A Date, since I looked up previous write ups on Mr. Jones, and all of them had nice things to say. And when the food came, I wasn't disappointed.   

Mr. Jones prepared a menu for us consisting of: 

"Grrreeen Goddess" Cobb Salad - Php 450
grilled chicken, crispy bacon, toasted almonds, fresh tomato,
fresh parmesan, whole baby romaine & homemade caesar dressing

--  I LOVE the freshness of the vegetables and their homemade dressing and parmesan, sarap!

  

"Truffled Disco:, Beef gravy & Cheese Fries - Php 395
topped with chunky beef smothered with
wild mushroom gravy & "fondue" cheese drizzled with truffle oil

-- This is one of my favorites. I loved the combination of flavors, the beef, the mushroom gravy, and the cheese.

A "Wet" California Big Burrito Platter - Php 395
topped with melted cheddar & jack cheese, loaded with carnitas,
black beans, mexican rice, salsa fresca, olives & sourcream served with
black beans, mexican rice & tortilla chips

-- Goin' Mexican this time, ole, ole!!! :) I love Mexican foods, so it is no surprise that I enjoyed eating this one.  I squeezed the lime over it, and it was perfect for me.          

Wicked Truffled Mac n' Cheese -Php 395
baked with 3 types of macaroni, 4 cheeses, "Canadian style" double smoked
bacon baby portobello mushrooms & green peas drizzled with truffle oil

-- This dish is way too heavy for me. Don't get me wrong, it is delicious, (4 cheeses & bacon - who can resist that?!) but I'm really not a fan of mac & cheese. Tim enjoyed it though.

  

Sizzlin' Butter Seafood "Foil Broil" - Php 420
prawns, mussles, clams & dory wrapped in a foil pouch
fresh lemon & parsley, served with grilled sourdough

-- WINNER!!! I love, love seafood!!!  The mussles, clams and dory were cooked to perfection. sadly though, the prawns were a little bit overcooked (feeling Masterchef!!!).  Again, the combination of flavors -- to die for! The sauce was oh-so-yummy, and also the sourdough, hay, we just can't get enough! :)

Warm Baked Brownie & a Blondie...So Good! - uh oh, I wasn't able to get the price!!!
served warm with 1 scoop of mantecado & 1 scoop of chocolate ice cream
(well, according to Wikipedia, mantecado is a name for a variety of Spanish shortbreads)

-- catchy name, huh!?! True to its name, the brownie was served warm and freshly baked, topped with a scoop of ice cream.   :)  

For drinks, we had:

Tropical Fruit Punch and Grape Frozen Iced Tea -- Php 125 

-- Refreshing and they didn't trigger my hyperacidity, so yay!!!  I've had bad experiences with the iced teas of other restaurants, hindi tummy friendly for me! so thank you Mr. Jones for these drinks!!!  :) 

Overall, I loved the whole experience. It was definitely worth trudging through the hectic holiday crowd na makapal (kahit Thursday) and get home at past 12 midnight.